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Spicy carrot & lentil soup.

Monday, January 16, 2012

I've been spending lots of time in the kitchen recently. It must be these chilly holiday weekends that make cooking and baking a lot more fun. One of my goals this year is to keep track of all our favorite recipes so that I can (finally) compile them into one pretty book so I don't have to try to remember where I found something the next time I want to make it.

This soup will make the cut.

It's perfect for a winter day and has a bit of Mexican flavor to heat things up just a bit.

1. Heat oil in a large, heavy-bottom pan over medium-low heat. Add the onion and cook for about 7 minutes, stirring occasionally. Add the potato and carrots and cook for an additional 5 minutes, stirring occasionally. Stir in the spices and cook for an additional minute.

2. Stir in the lentils and stock. Bring to a boil, then reduce the heat and let simmer, half-covered, over low heat, stirring occasionally to prevent the lentils from sticking to the bottom of the pan, for 25 minutes, or until the lentils are tender.

3. Use an immersion blender (or food processor) and process the soup until thick and smooth. Season to taste with salt and pepper. Sprinkle with fresh cilantro before serving.

(We recommend it with Trader Joe's corn chips and a honeycrisp apple!)

P.S. I heavily adapted this recipe from a book called "Wheat, Dairy, & Gluten Free" that doesn't name an author that was purchased TJMaxx for $3.50. I can't find the book online, but I also can't really recommend it for newly diagnosed Celiacs because even though it claims to be g-free, it calls for spelt flour quite a bit (which is glutenous). But I needed to give credit where credit is due for this yummy idea!

1. Don't worry about the red split lentils... that's just what the recipe called for, but brown would work JUST fine (I couldn't tell a difference one bit).

2. I have a Cuisinart immersion blender and love it! It was about $25 or $30 at Costco and worth every bit to not have to transfer soups to the food processor and back (what a mess). I hope that helps!

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